Collapsible partition construction



April 17, 1956 w. D. SEYMOUR 2,742,084

COLLAPSIBLE PARTITION CONSTRUCTION Filed May 4, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig. 3

54 mllllll William 0. Seymour IN VEN TOR.

P 1956 w. D. SEYMOUR COLLAPSIBLE PARTITION CONSTRUCTION 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 William 0 Seymour Filed May 4, 1955 INVENTOR.

United States This invention relates generally to a novel construction of doors. and pertains more particularly to a door of the collapsible type.

A primary object of this invention is to provide a novel and improved form of collapsible door which will present a solid obstruction to vision while at the same time permitting air currents to pass therethrough, thereby presenting a maximum of both privacy and comfort.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved form of collapsible door assembly provided with novel mounting means.

Another object of this invention is to provide a collapsible door which utilizes a plurality of vertically disposed and angularly configurated slats which may be moved from a nested position to an extended position, the latter position forming a closure for a door opening.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a door construction in conformity with the foregoing objects which is of simple yet efficient design and in which the moving parts are substantially concealed so as to present a pleasing appearance.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure 1 is a vertical elevation showing the novel door construction in closed relation to a conventional door opening;

Figure 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the door assembly, portions being broken away, and showing details of its construction;

Figure 3 is an enlarged transverse vertical section taken through the assembly; and

Figure 4 is a top plan view of the door outside of its track showing the same in nested relation.

Referring now more particularly to Figures 1 and 2, reference numeral It indicates generally the framing surrounding a conventional door opening, the reference character 12 indicating the top piece or lintel thereof, this latter construction concealing the track 14 forming a part of the invention.

Vertically disposed slats 16 are provided at their upper ends with U-shaped brackets 18, the bight 20 of these brackets being secured to a pedestal portion 22 on the slats by means of screws, as shown, and vertically extending spaced legs 24 are provided with countersunk aper tures within which pins 26 are secured. These pins rotatably carry rollers 28 at their free ends and the rollers are disposed within the confines of the track 14 and rest upon a guide surface portion 30 thereof. The surfaces lie between the flange portion 32 and vertical cars 34 of the track, the track being shown as substantially of channel configuration although other shapes may be utilized to advantage.

Each slat is connected to an adjacent slat through the. medium of the hinge assemblies which consists of atent C "ice pairs of straps 34 and 36 pivotally secured together at their inner ends as at 38 and pivotally carried at their other end by adjacent brackets 18 by virtue of a pivot pin 40 extending vertically from these brackets. The length of the straps when extended, is such that the facing between adjacent slats prevents a line of vision through the door assembly no matter what the angle of the viewer while at the same time the spacing will be such as to allow free passage of air through the door even when it presents such vision obstruction. This is particularly important in warm climates wherein this particular construction of door assembly is particularly suited for use.

Referring now more particularly to Figures 2 and 3, it will. be seen that the lower ends of the vertical slats are provided with interconnecting straps 42 connected to the supportin bars 46 by means of the pivot pins 44, these hinge assemblies being similar in construction and operation to the previously described hinge assemblies at the npper'end of the slats. In this respect, it is noted that thrust washers 48 are provided on the various pivot pins 40 and 44, to face the straps away from the supporting members 18 and 46 and to provide a proper thrust bearing surface for the straps.

The working parts of the assembly provided at the upper ends of the slats are enclosed within the track 14 and are hence obscured thereby while the supporting members 46 and straps 42 at the lower end of the slats, since the lower end is not provided with a track means, are visible and to obscure this latter assembly, strips of decorative material 50 may be provided on each side of the door as by the fasteners 52, these strips extending below the supporting members 46 which are, of course, secured to the slats at a pedestal portion 54.

As seen in Figure 1, the end slat is provided with a hand hold or recess 56 by means of which the assembly may be easily manipulated to either its inoperative nested position as shown in Figure 4 or its operative extended position as shown in Figure 1.

Although the assembly as described above and shown in the accompanying drawings is directed particularly to the use of the assembly as a door, the construction is not intended to be so limited. Obviously, the particular contruction shown and described could equally well be utilized as a window blind by merely omitting the hinge connection between adjacent slats and substituting a flexible cord connection therefor. The resultant blind would retain the important feature of allowing free entry of air while at the same time obstructing a line of vision through the blind.

From the foregoing, the construction and operation of the device will be readily understood and further explanation is believed to be unnecessary. However, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. In a collapsible partition, 2. track adapted to be secured between the sides of a building opening, said track including spaced vertical flanges having inwardly directed horizontal guide portions at their lower edges, a plurality of vertically disposed V-shaped slats suspended from said track, movable from a nested position to an extended position presenting a closure for the opening, a support ing bracket at the upper end of each of said slats having means at its opposite ends received in said track and engaging the guide portions thereof for permitting the slats to be moved therealong, a limiting assembly provided between adjacent slats, said assembly comprising a strap pivotally secured at one end to a bracket, the other end amaosa.

,a plurality of vertically disposed \l-shaped slats suspended from said track, movable from a nested position to an .extended position presenting a closure for the opening,

a supporting bracket at the upper end ofeach of said slats having means at its opposite ends received in saidn'track and engaging the guide portions thereof for permitting the slats to be moved therealong, a limiting assembly provided between adjacent slats, said assembly comprising a strap pivotally secured at one end to a bracket, the

other end of said strap being pivotally connected to a [corresponding end of another strap on an adjacent bracket,

said pivotal connections being vertically disposed said V-shaped slats including overlapping side portions per- 'mitting the passage of air between adjacent slats and preventing visibility thereby.

3. In a collapsible partition, a track adapted to be secured between the sides of a building opening, said track including spaced vertical flanges having inwardly directed horizontal guide portions at their lower edges, a plurality of vertically disposed V-shaped slats suspended from said track, movable from a nested position to an extended position presenting a closure for the opening, said slats providing a vision obstruction while permitting air currents to pass when in extended position, a U-shaped supporting bracket having a horizontal bight portion secured to the upper end of each of said slats across the angulated legs thereof, said bracket also having an upstanding ear at each end, a roller journaled on each of said ears engaging the respective guide portions of said track, a limiting assembly provided between adjacent slats, said assembly comprising a strap pivotally secured at one end to a bracket, the other end of said strap being pivotally connected to a corresponding end of another strap on an adjacent bracket.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,059,134 Metcalf Oct. 27, 1936 2,135,647 Streby Nov. 8, 1938 2,607,409 Svirsky Aug. 19, 1952 2,614,627 Miller Oct. 21, 1952 

